Sliding Doors: You’re The Brewers GM! My Offseason Plan: One Salary Dump, One Reunion, One International Star

When a team has won back-to-back division titles, it’s best to go with the adage, “If it ain’t broke, don’t fix it.” The Brewers are far from wholly broken, but they don’t need to change things… unless it’s for a good reason. This time, though, we are channeling the movie, "Sliding Doors."

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While we earlier discussed an offseason where the Brewers retained Willy Adames, this time, the door closes a little earlier. For the sake of this discussion, we’re going to assume that despite Adames saying he would take less money to stay in Milwaukee and the Crew channeling the spirit of Bobby Bonilla, he moves on to another MLB team.

The Brewers have multiple battle royales brewing in the position player group and the rotation. They’ve done well building up a bullpen out of almost nothing for years before the run of success they had. So, what could they do in the offseason? Here’s what I’d do if I were in Matt Arnold’s chair.

Trade: Send 1B Rhys Hoskins to the Arizona Diamondbacks for C Ivan Luciano
The first order of business is to gain some financial flexibility—a necessity with the collapse of the Bally Sports regional networks—and the best way to do that is to move Rhys Hoskins. Arizona will be looking for a replacement for Christian Walker, who draws interest from the Yankees. The Brewers can provide that in Hoskins, who did not do poorly in his first season back from knee surgery.

The Brewers don’t ask for much for this salary dump; in this case, the return is a catcher in rookie-league ball. Luciano looks much like Darrien Miller, who has better defense and is a left-handed hitter. Luciano could be a viable #2 catcher behind Jeferson Quero starting in 2028 when William Contreras will likely depart as a free agent (if he isn’t traded sooner).

Reunion: Sign 1B Carlos Santana for one year, $6 million with a mutual option for 2026 for $7.5 million and a $1.5 million buyout
In hindsight, the Brewers might have been better off retaining Santana in the 2023-2024 offseason. For about half Hoskins’ salary, he played 150 games, posted a .749 OPS, and added Gold Glove defense. A reunion, in this case, makes sense.

Santana is a switch-hitter, and while he is seven years older than Hoskins, his bat still looks potent; his on-base skills are sharp, and it improves the Brewers defensively in 2025 and provides a possible bridge to Ernesto Martinez (or one of the Brewers in the third-base battle royale) in 2026.

Yes, the Brewers may want to give the defense less to do, but it never hurts to boost defense. If it can be done for a third of the cost and with about the same offensive production, that’s a much better bargain for a team that will need it due to revenue uncertainty.

The International Star: Brewers sign Roki Sasaki for $3 million in international bonus money
This probably blows up plans surrounding the 2025 international free agent class. The team will have to re-configure how they do the other signings to an extent, but Sasaki is a game-changer for the 2025 Brewers.

Sasaki’s description of what he is looking for seems to fit Milwaukee very well, and it gives the Brewers a new Big Three when you add Freddy Peralta and Tobias Myers to the mix. It’s an excellent replacement for Colin Rea on a one-for-one basis (with a higher upside) and a good insurance policy if Brandon Woodruff isn’t the same after his shoulder surgery. Plus, Sasaki will have an outstanding bullpen behind him. It's hard to imagine a better situation for a starting pitching phenom to air-drop into.

As for the contract itself? How about something along the lines of the contracts Freddy Peralta and Aaron Ashby signed? Pay $2 million in 2025, $4 million in 2026 and 2027, $6 million in 2028 and 2029, $8.5 million in 2030 and 2031, with team options of $15 million in 2032 and 2033.

Other Moves
I’d retain Devin Williams, offering him a four-year, $30 million deal with an opt-out after the second year with the money saved by moving Hoskins. Williams is coming off the back injury that cost him about two-thirds of 2024, and he will likely be glad to get some financial stability. At the same time, it’s a deal that could make Williams an enticing trade target for other teams, especially if he proves the back problems were a one-time thing.

Aaron Civale also becomes a hold in this case, becoming the team’s fourth starter. Yes, this will be expensive, but at the same time, the money isn’t just for Civale – it’s buying a year of Triple-A seasoning for Carlos F. Rodriguez, Logan Henderson, Jacob Misiorowski, Shane Smith, Chad Patrick, and K.C. Hunt, among others. It buys Robert Gasser and Brandon Woodruff time to rehab properly. Bryse Wilson will be brought back after being outrighted to Triple-A Nashville, simply because he’s been a solid performer as a multi-inning reliever and emergency starter.

Hoby Milner, Elvis Peguero, Joel Payamps, J.B. Bukauskas, Vinny Capra, and Brewer Hicklen will likely also be moved, ideally for international bonus money to compensate for the massive bonus it will take to lure Sasaki to Milwaukee.

Projected 26-man Roster On Opening Day

Lineup: